Sweet Love
by Wendy McCalister
Summary: Basically one shots featuring Botan with any Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter character. Mostly fluff.
1. Chapter 1: Killua

**Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter. Both anime series belong to the great and talented, Yoshihiro Togashi.**

 **Summary: Basically one shots featuring Botan with any Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter characters. Mostly fluff.**

 **Chapter 1: Killua**

Sapphire orbs glared heatedly at the table - or more specifically, at a certain blue haired ferry girl. With one hand, he swung his backpack on his shoulder, and with the other, he slammed the door shut. The loud banging noise managed to get the attentions of the others in the house, but none of them really bothered to acknowledge him, assuming he had been through on another bad day.

Setting the backpack on the couch, Killua flopped down, before reaching one fist to grab the remote. Pretending he didn't notice the amethyst eyes gazing curiously at him, the silver haired assassin procceeded to switch the television on.

"Killua," that feminine voice reached his ears, "Would you like some of these chocolates? They taste really good."

He threw the remote lazily on an unoccupied space on the couch, before pinning an uninterested stare on Botan. In her hands, she held a small, pink box of chocolates, the cheery smile stuck on her face as always.

He really wasn't sure what she was doing here. They didn't know each other quite well, but Botan had been spending a lot of time with the group, mostly with Gon, which he found weird. Killua figured she must have taken a liking to Gon since the black haired boy saved her from a bunch of thieves trying to attack her just two months ago. Really, and she told them she was with her friends - which he also heard was considerably strong, the Reikai Tantei or whatever it was she called them - but she got separated from them. When she was finally reunited with her companions, Killua thought that was the last time he would ever get to see her again.

Obviously, he was proven wrong.

He actually felt sorry for her. She apparently liked Gon a lot if she was trying so relentlessly to "visit them" once a while. But, truth be told, although they were both - he and Gon - were eighteen now, the latter was still as ignorant and clueless as he was six years ago. So, Killua doubted his best friend could respond to her feelings appropriately. Really, the girl should just give up. With her constant presence, she was beginning to become a pain in the ass for the assassin. She didn't bother him in particular, but he found her need to consistently come over their house every three times a week was irking at the very least. Not to mention, she was cutting into what he dubbed as "his and Gon's best friend time", with her and Gon spending more and more time with each other these days. She was infuriating. Gon was his best friend. Stop trying to steal him. Although, he couldn't help but feel this stabbing pain at the middle in his chest everytime he saw them together, which was an oddity, but he quickly brushed the feeling off as him being possessive over his best friend.

He scoffed.

As if he would actually saw her that way.

"No," Killua finally answered after a while of silence, pushing his thoughts over the possibility of him having feelings for her into the deepest part of his mind, where they hopefully would never appear again. He then averted his gaze back to the television. There wasn't any interesting, so he kept switching from one channel to the next back and forth.

"Aww, come on, Killua!" Gon's voice practically begged him. He could almost see the black haired boy's mouth forming a pout. "Botan-san made this especially for us! They're really delicious! You'll regret not eating them, I swear!"

Killua rolled his eyes. "All the more reason I don't want them," he mumbled grudgingly under his breath. Ignoring his best friend's invitation and Kurapika reprimanding him of his rude behavior, he stood up from the couch, not bothering to turn the television off as he walked his way to his room. There wasn't anything worth watching anyway.

Just as he was about to shut his door close, a foot stepped in, halting his movements. He blinked at the foot peeking through the crack in the door, before letting out a groan of exasperation as the person at the other side pushed the wooden material open, revealing no one other than Botan. The last person he wanted to see in his room.

But, for some reason, he just let her enter, closing the door behind her as she did so. His brows furrowed at the wide, ear to ear grin lifting up her lips.

"Ne, Killua! Don't be that way..." she said in that perky tone of hers, and proceeded to retrieve something from her back - the box of chocolates she had showed him before. She handed it to him. "Here, why don't you try them?"

The silver haired assassin shot her an irritated expression. Strolling away from her, he flopped down on the bed, regarding her with a deep scowl. "What part of "I don't want them" don't you understand, woman?" he practically growled.

Paying no mind to the less than friendly way he was speaking to her, Botan sauntered her way to him, Killua's glare going unnoticed by her as she uninvitedly sat on an unoccupied space on the bed. Without responding to his words, the girl placed the box of chocolates beside the assassin's lap.

"Look, just try at least one," She paused to give him another smile, "and if you don't like them, you can throw them away."

One silver eyebrow quirked at her in a questioning manner. Was this woman serious? Did she really want him to eat her goddamn chocolates that much? Crazy. He sighed, but decided not to give in so easily to her wishes. If he ended up liking them, he couldn't help but feel as if she had won, even if they weren't really practically competing or anything.

"No," came his stubborn response.

A crease formed on the girl's forehead. "What? Why not?" she asked in confusion. What was it that she had to do to make him eat them? It wasn't that hard! It wouldn't kill him if he took a bite. When he didn't respond, Botan started to grow anxious and angry at the same time.

Killua watched with blinking eyes as Botan suddenly opened the box of chocolates, abruptly taking one love shaped chocolate between her fingers.

Then, she popped it in her mouth.

His jaws felled open in shock.

"W-what... what the hell are you doing?" For once, Killua found himself utterly taken aback by the girl. Didn't she want to give them to him? Why on earth would she just up and eat it like that? Really, she was weird beyond definition.

Botan didn't reply at once, instead she expelled a contented sigh as the sweet taste of the chocolate melted on her tongue. "This taste so good..."

"Are you really praising your own work?"

"Is that a crime?" And then, she popped another into her mouth. "Anyway, if you don't want them, then I might as well just eat them than let them go to waste," her voice was muffled as she was busy chewing.

He stared at her in disbelieve, his eyes wide as saucers as he watched her consume one chocolate after the other. In some insane part of his mind, there was something nagging at him to stop her because heck, he wanted them to himself. On normal occassions, he would just ignore that part of him, especially when it was involving her, of all people. But, this time, he actually listened.

Snatching the box before she could grab another piece of that mouth-watering chocolate, Killua quickly kept it out of her grasp. "Don't eat all of them, you greedy idiot!" he accidentally cried out.

He didn't realize what he just uttered out, until a subtle, victorious smirk slowly curled up at the corners of her mouth. For a moment, his eyes gazed over the glossy texture of her pink lips, before he quickly gained some sense into his head.

A pink tint began to crept up his cheeks. "W-what? It's only because I like chocolates, okay?" he tried desperately to defend himself when he saw the teasing gleam in her amethyst orbs.

Placing a hand over her mouth, Botan tried to pull a vain effort to stifle a giggle. "Yeah, sure..." came her sarcastic response, to which the silver haired assassin couldn't help but turn redder in the face.

"Why you little-!"

Botan raised her arms defensively in the air as she realized Killua was on the verge of throwing curses at her. "Hey, hey! Relax! You wouldn't want them to go to waste, now would you?" she tried to change the subject, gesturing to the chocolates.

Killua fixed his eyes on the sweet snack, mentally noting to himself there were at least seven of them left. He gave out a small snort, before turning his head away from the bluenette, in an attempt to hide the blush on his face. Then again, it wasn't as if she hadn't seen it.

He could almost feel her smiling in glee as he took one piece between his lips, before fully engulfing the tasty chocolate in his mouth. He slowly chewed on it, taking a moment to judge her cooking skills and to savor the sweet taste. She did a good job, he would give her that. Not that he would willingly admit that out loud though.

Botan's face felt like it could disappear behind the huge, ear to ear grin she sported. "So? How does it taste?" she inquired, leaning in closer to the assassin, the anticipation of his answer evident on her lovely features.

Killua almost choked on the piece of chocolate when their proximity considerably neared. He considered scooting away, but at the determined look on her face, he found that he couldn't move a muscle.

"Ne, Killua?" Her voice reverberated in the room, reaching his ears and breaking him out of his reverie. He gulped audibly when she closed in the mere inches of distance between their faces, her nose nearly brushing against his. "How does it taste?" she repeated.

He stared into his eyes, realizing for a second the beautiful shade in her pools of amethyst, before slowly trailing his gaze to her lips. Soft, honey dew, **inviting** lips...

Deciding he really needed to snap out of it, Killua inwardly shook his head. Shit, what the hell was he thinking? He developed a red tinge around his cheeks, backing away a little to increase the distance between them. He looked at everywhere in the room but her questioning gaze.

"Uh... d-does it really matter?" he tried to come off as nonchalant, cursing at himself when he stuttered instead. He hoped she would leave him alone at that.

Fortunately, Botan didn't seem to notice he had stammered - or perhaps, it wasn't really relevant to her as she was preoccupied of thinking over the number of reasons why he would think it didn't matter - as she pulled away with a deep frown etched to her forehead.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what I mean."

Her frown seemed to impossibly deepen, and Killua's expression began to match hers as the girl looked like she was about to cry. "You know that's not what I meant! I mean, I went through all the hard word to make those for you because I like you... I even went out of my way to make some for Gon, Kurapika and Leorio because I thought you would suspect that I have a crush on you... and that's all you have to say? That it "doesn't matter"? Why I ought to... Oh _shit..._ " Botan visibly paled as the revelation hit her of what she had accidentally said. Curse her and her habit of rambling about things she shouldn't!

She stared wide eyed at Killua's equally surprised expression. For some reason unknown to her however, the blush coloring his cheeks darkened, making him look as if he was a ripe tomato under her embarrassed gaze.

There was a moment of silence, before Botan abruptly stood up from the bed, the red tint on her face understandably darker than Killua's, as she pried for a way out. "Um, forget what I said... You know what, I think I heard Gon-kun calling my name! So, yeah, uh, I gotta go! So, um, if you'll excuse me..." Her voice was a few octaves higher, her words sounding very high pitched, which actually gave away that she was bluffing. Without so much as another word, the girl turned, her back facing him, and making to go for the door.

It wasn't until he saw that she was about to walk out on him, did he finally realize how he truly felt for her. Considering her demeanor, she probably wouldn't come back to this house for a while if she left. And who knows how long would it be before he could finally see her again? He couldn't just-

And it wasn't until at that moment, when he risked losing her, did he finally snap out of whatever trance that held him captive. In one swift motion, his hand shot up, grabbing her arm, and stopping her before she could take another step.

"K-Killua...?" Botan, caught off guard by his sudden actions, were on the verge of whipping around to face him... when he pulled her down into his lap.

"Wha-" Botan didn't manage to finish her sentence, as she was quickly silenced by a pair of warm, soft lips crushing against her surprised, still ones. His kiss was brief and featherlike, and before she could comprehend what just happened, or even respond to the lip lock, he pulled apart.

She stared dazedly into his mischief filled sapphire orbs. His mouth pulled upwards to form a cheshire like grin, one she could definitely match with hers.

"You're a really terrible liar," was all he said, before leaning in for another kiss.

The chocolates laid forgotten on an unoccupied space on the bed.

 **A/N: Ookaayy... So, I know it's probably weird that I started this fic with Killua/Botan... but, I couldn't help it! I just think they're so cute together!**

 **So, as you all already could guess by the summary, this is a series of Botan/insert any YYH or HXH character here oneshots, so... yeah. This is entirely Botan-centric. I just find her totally too shippable! Really. I love her with just about anyone. But, mostly with YYH and HXH characters. Although my main pairing is certainly Kurama/Botan, Youko/Botan, and pretty an unlikely but undoubted cute couple, Killua/Botan, I accept any requests from readers for any ships. But, if there are no requests, then I'll go and make another one shot based on the next pairing I choose XD**

 **Although, my update will probably be slow, as I have a bad habit of conjuring up new stories, while having a lot of unfinished ones, so my sole focus isn't entirely on this fic. But, I will try and update as soon as I can!**

 **That's all I have to say. Hope you enjoyed this! Don't forget to review when you have the time and request if you want me to do a one shot on a pairing you like (as long as it's with Botan)!**

 **Good bye!**


	2. Chapter 2: Hiei

**Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter. Both belong to the great and talented, Yoshihiro Togashi.**

 **Summary: Basically one shots featuring Botan with any Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter characters. Mostly fluff.**

 **Chapter 2: Hiei**

Hiei was upset.

No, that was wrong. Upset didn't even begin to cover it. Pissed off was more like it.

He glared at the ferry girl sitting at the other edge of the bed, his crimson eyes threatening to burn a hole into her head. Botan, who had been busy fiddling with her thumbs, looked up at him, letting out a nervous giggle. The sound only served to antagonize him even further, however, as his glare intensified, looking as if he was about to set her on fire. Knowing Hiei, he probably would, so Botan scooted a little farther than him - as if they weren't sitting far enough already.

Botan let her eyes glance here and there in the room, trying to avoid his heated gaze, whilst wondering to herself if there was anything she could do. It had been over an hour, and she couldn't seem to find an exit. Hiei had tried as well, but to no avail. If **he** couldn't, then it came to no surprise that she was bound to fail. This room was completely locked, the mirrors wouldn't budge no matter how much they tugged, pulled at the windowsill, and the walls seemed to be fire proof. Hiei had attempted to burn the whole room down for a way out, but his efforts were fruitless. Whoever built this room certainly thought everything through when they managed to capture them. Botan couldn't help but think Hiei blamed her. She **was** the one who suggested they checked the insides of this room for a clue, and she **did** get them captived. But, she just wished Hiei would stop shooting daggers her way. It wasn't helping their situation.

Come to think about it though, this was the first time she was actually alone with him. When they got separated with the others, Botan didn't think much of it because at the time there was a chance they could meet up again. But, now that she thought about it, she couldn't help the nervousness creeping up her skin. Not only due to the reason he looked like he might rip her throat out right then and there, but also because she didn't know what to say. I mean, the tense, awkward silence was **killing** her! She wasn't used to being quiet for so long, seeing as she was the most talkative in the group... and again, Hiei's constant glares weren't helping!

Maybe she should say something...

Rotating her head to the right to face him, the corners of her mouth curled upwards into her usual wide, ear to ear grin. Despite his heated stare, the grin never wavered.

"It's hot in this room, isn't it?" she asked, a sheepish laughter escaping her lips, and waited for a response. Unfortunately, Hiei merely quirked an eyebrow at her, and nothing more. She then decided she might as well go on, maybe he would finally say something if she did. "It almost feels like it's boiling, doesn't it?" she continued, a sweatdrop forming at her head when Hiei pulled a bored expression.

He gave out a snorting sound, and finally, for once during the duration of their captivity, turned to look away from her. Although glad that his glare was no longer focused on her but the wall, Botan could have sworn she saw him narrow his eyes. Crossing one leg over the other, he placed his elbow on the one on top, burying his chin in his palm. Then, without whipping his head to fully face her, he shifted his orbs to the side, studying her out of the corner of his eye. For some reason, his actions unnerved her.

"I don't care about the room, you stupid woman," Was it her imagination or did he just growl at her? "But, my **insides** are what's boiling with the intense desire to **kill** you."

The ferry girl visibly paled at his words. "Ha-ha, Hiei, you're such a jokester!" she choked out a fake laugh, but the look on his features didn't imply that he was.

When she received another silent stare in response, Botan quickly averted her gaze, her eyes shifting to the floor - which was far not scary or dangerous as the fire demon was. Her heart felt like it was inches from jumping out of her throat, and it didn't help that he was gazing at her. Not glaring. But just... **gazing**. Although it should feel friendlier than his usual glares, it didn't. She almost felt like he was thinking over the numerous ways he could make her suffer a slow, painful death.

Contrary to her beliefs, however, Hiei was not thinking of such things. Although, he wouldn't deny that he **had** been at the beginning, but right now, he was laughing on the inside at the girl's stupidity. To think she would actually believe that blatant lie! Even though he did think of slitting her throat from time to think, he wouldn't actually do it. Yusuke and Kuwabara would kill him if he did. He suspected Kurama would as well, and he wasn't reall strong enough to fight all three of them at once, much to his dismay. All that aside though... perhaps he **did** care about her. Just a little bit beyond the boundaries of their friendship - if there was one.

His brows furrowed. _Okay, where the hell did **that** come from? _he thought, the smirk that had been on his countenance faltering into a thin angry line. _Snap out of it, Hiei. Isn't she just a stupid ferry girl?_

 _Get your mind out of the gutter. You would never even think of her like **that.**_

Shaking his head inwardly to brush off the thoughts, Hiei eventually shifted his gaze elsewhere - anywhere but her face. But, the frown marring his features never left, as the thoughts refused to leave him alone. He grunted, shutting his eyes tight in frustration. Why can't he stop thinking about her? The fact that she was in the same room as him, fidgeting on the bed with that cute, nervous, almost terrified look on her lovely face, was only worsening the situation. Really, would she just stop being scared of him?

Botan, on the other hand, was hesitating whether or not she should look at him. She felt his eyes leaving her form, which was a good thing, but at the thought that he might be polishing his sword for preparation to slit her throat made her a tad bit reluctant.

... Then again, if he **was** thinking of killing her, he would have done so a long time ago.

Maybe she was just overthinking things.

Deciding that she should calm down a bit, the ferry girl heaved out a sigh, forcing her body to relax. When she finally did - just a little - she turned to peer at him - only to blink when she saw that he was, for some reason unknown to her, closing his eyes with a deep frown etched to his forehead. She realized he was thinking about something, and for a brief moment, she pondered what it was. Whatever it was, it seemed to be agitating Hiei a lot if he was making that frustrated expression.

He looked cute though... Botan couldn't help but grin. Although the only words he had ever exchanged to her were mostly death threats and name callings, the ferry girl would admit that she **did** find him attractive. Especially when he was shirtless - like right now. Her grin wavered slightly as a blush crept up her cheeks. Even as she was embarrassed at her own thoughts, Botan couldn't help but let her eyes wander all over every inch of his body. Her lips parted slightly as she gazed at those biceps... his pecks... and oh god, those abs... How could someone be so perfect? Despite being the shortest man she had ever seen, he was undoubtedly one of the most muscular and sexy ones she had the pleasure of lying her eyes on. Just seeing those muscles flex when he takes a deep breath... or when he moves...

Her gaze traveled abruptly to his face and... _why the hell was he staring at her?_ Amethyst orbs broadened into saucers, as the red tint coloring her cheeks impossibly darkened. He was regarding her with a weird expression, but she could almost see him stifling a smirk.

"Like what you see, ferry girl?" he asked, his voice almost husky as those words left his lips.

"I-I- Of course not!" she stammered, promptly averting her gaze. She crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to appear indignant, tilting her nose up in the air haughtily as she closed her eyes. The effect wore off however, due to the fact that her face was practically as red as a tomato.

Good grief, this was embarrassing... To think she was caught staring... and by Hiei, of all people! No doubt he was on the verge of butchering her with his bare hands for even daring to look his way... but then again, the look in his eyes suggested something else.

But, that wasn't possible.

Nervously, she peeked one eye open to spare him a fleeting glance, widening both of them when she realized that their proximity was considerably close - with him leaning his face to hers. There was a light smirk tugging at his lips, his usual cold, filled with murder intent crimson eyes tinted in mirth and mischief.

"You **did.** "

Botan swallowed a lump in her throat, trying to scoot away from him. Although, her efforts were in vain, as he closed in an inch of their distance each time she did.

"I-I did... what?"

Hiei's smirk widened as the blush on her features considerably reddened. "You did enjoy the view." His voice had dropped a few octaves lower, his words coming out as a mere whisper. The feel of his hot breath fanning over her ear caused a shiver to travel down her spine.

Oh, no. She had to get out of this.

"L-Like I said, I didn't!" Just as she cried out those words, the ferry girl placed both fists on his - bare - chest, shoving him off of her. Hiei could have stopped her, but he allowed her to scurry off the bed, a loud, amused laughter erupting from his throat.

"Y-You're unbelievable..." she mumbled under her breath, casting a glare at the smug smirk lingering at the edge of his lips. Ignoring his stare, Botan whipped around to saunter her way for the couch sitting at the middle of the room, nothing but the idea of staying away from him appealing to her.

Maybe because she was embarrassed, or maybe it was due to her normal clumsiness - but just as she walked three steps, she tripped. Literally. On nothing but her own two feet. A loud cry involuntarily left her lips, her eyes automatically shutting tight as she waited for the fall.

... But, there was nothing.

Eyelids fluttering open, the girl slowly opened her eyes, blinking at the feel of strong, muscular arms wrapping protectively around her waist. What just happened?

A loud, exasperated sigh echoed in the air, reaching her ears and snapping her out of her reverie. Darting her gaze slowly upwards to the owner, Botan was met eye to eye with a pair of deep, **beautiful** crimson pools.

Her own eyes widened in surprise, her mouth opening and closing like a stupid fish as another bright, crimson tinge crept up her cheeks. "I-I, uh, um..." Botan tried to say, but she couldn't even string a sentence in her head, much less speak out loud - and she was vividly aware of her hands on his chest.

She made to push him away, but he beat her to it, unhooking his arms from her lithe form and taking a step back to study her with an irritated stare, his mouth tugged down to form a deep scowl.

"Really, your stupidity is **astounding**..." he grumbled under his breath in a grudging tone, before turning to stroll back for the bed. That much was expected from him, but the words that escaped him next were what caught her off guard,

"Be more careful next time... Botan."

The ferry girl blinked in surprise, but the shock soon died down, replaced by a feeling close to that of joy and amusement. Following behind him, Botan took a seat on the bed, this time closer to him as their shoulders almost brushed. For once, the fire demon didn't seem to mind.

"That's the first time you said my name, Hiei..." she murmured, a small smile crossing her lips. A giggle began to build in her chest, before erupting from her throat as she earned a snort in return.

" _So?_ " came his response, but despite his words, his voice lacked the resentment it was almost always laced with.

Her smile broadened slightly. "So, that made me kind of happy."

She saw him jerk a little at her words, but nothing more.

"Ne, Hiei?" she called out, all of a sudden. The fire demon didn't say anything, but turned his head to look at her. "Thank you."

Crimson eyes blinked for a moment, before averting to the wall. Whipping his head to the side, Hiei made a small scoffing sound. "Hn. Whatever," he grumbled in reply.

Despite his words however, Botan could have sworn she caught a light blush on his cheeks.

 **A/N: Hmm... this is my first time writing a Botan/Hiei... I hope I did a good job... though I can say for sure that I enjoyed writing this. It was a lot of fun!**

 **Don't forget to request if you want me to write on a pairing you ship! I'd love to write on anyone, as long as they're with Botan... but again, if I get no requests then I'm going to go ahead and write a couple I choose XP**

 **Good bye, hope you all enjoyed reading this little one-shot as much as I had fun writing it! Have a good day, and review when you have the time!**


	3. Chapter 3: Kurapika

**Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter. Both anime series belong to the great and talented, Yoshihiro Togashi.**

 **Summary: Basically one shots featuring Botan with any Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter characters. Mostly fluff.**

 **Chapter 3: Kurapika**

"Hey, guys! How have you been? Long time no see!"

A blonde head turned to peer at whoever it was that had rudely slammed the door open, his mouth parting just a little to reprimand the intruder for their lack of manners. However, his words died down on his tongue as instantly as he caught sight of the so called "intruder". That exotic sky blue hair, those vibrant, amethyst orbs and that wide, cheery smile could only belong to one person.

"Botan-san?" It had been months since he uttered that name, and it felled odd as it rolled off his tongue - in a good way, of course.

The ferry girl blinked at the lack of tenants in the house, before whipping her head to the right at the sound of his smooth voice. Amethysts met grey, and a huge, ear to ear grin quickly found its way to her face, brightening up her features.

"Ah, Kurapika! How have you been?" she asked, repeating her question from before.

Although taken by surprise at her sudden experience, especially when he hadn't seen her for three monts at the very least, Kurapika could only blink at her stupidly in response. It took him a few long, awkward moments of silence before he found the ability to speak again.

"H-Hello, Botan-san. Um, I've been fine, I guess... and how about you?" he inquired slowly, as his shock gradually died down, a smile barely conceivable as it crossed his lips and he watched her as she closed the door, before taking a seat on the chair across from his.

"Been pretty busy. But, yeah, I've been great." She shrugged. "Where are the others?"

Kurapika didn't answer at once, folding a little piece of the page he had been reading so he wouldn't forget where he left off, before closing the book and regarding the girl with a quirk of his eyebrow. "Gon and Killua are out training somewhere. And Leorio..." A chuckle began to build in his chest, before erupting from his throat, "He's actually going on a date right now."

"Huh?" Botan looked up at him with a startled expression. She got over the suprise sooner than possible though, as a grin crept up her lips. "Date?"

He nodded his head. "Yeah, he met her at Yorknew City. He went back there for a job. I guess you could say it's fate... but then, I don't believe in that sort of thing," he said with a subtle smile touching his mouth, and gave a light shrug of his shoulder.

"Oh-ho? Really now, Kurapika? There's always such a thing called destined lovers, you know!" she beamed excitedly, despite the teasing grin she sported.

He arched one eyebrow at her. "Do **you** believe in that sort of thing?"

She shrugged her right shoulder lightly, unconsciously copying his earlier movements. "Well... I believe anything's possible... so I guess so, yeah," she responded, after a moment of musing over an appropriate answer.

He stared at her, but said nothing in response. She always struck him as the ditzy, cheerful and positive always smiling ferry girl. It seemed hard to believe that this girl sitting in front of him with a wide grin that could make it seem that her face would disappear behind it was actually a spirit guide for dead souls. Harder to believe was that he and his friends actually crossed paths with her. How did they first meet again? He remembered Botan helping out an old lady, and he just so happened to be passing by the area and decided to lend his own assistance. He wasn't quite sure what made him approach her that day, but he always felt a little drawn to her. Maybe because she seemed to brighten up his days ever since, with her cheery, clumsy but not in a bad way, and sometimes innocent, sometimes playful attitude.

Shaking his head, Kurapika brushed off the thoughts, although a small smile lingered at the edge of his lips. "Where are Kurama-san and the rest of the Reikai Tantei? Did they not come here with you?" he asked, eyeing her as she leaned back in her chair.

She hummed in response. "Well, they're kinda busy with their own lives so..." Her grin suddenly faltered, reducing to a pained, bitter smile instead, as a melancholic, almost forlorn look touched her usually bright, joy-filled pools of amethysts.

Upon seeing the expression marring her lovely features, Kurapika could almost guess what she was feeling. "Are you lonely without them?"

As those words escaped him, Botan seemed to snap out of a trance as she shifted her gaze to him, surprise evident on her countenance. "Lonely? Hmm... I guess..." she murmured, her voice soft. For a moment, he thought she would break down crying right then and there, and almost went up to comfort her and apologize for asking a question that upset her, but then, a cheshire cat grin, one he had seen her wear on countless times, lifted up her lips. "But, I have you and Gon, Killua... and Leorio now! So, I'm fine really. When I visit you guys, I feel like I'm having a lot of fun. Like I'm being with the Reikai Tantei and my friends over at Japan, you know?"

The last, few sentences that she uttered out promtly embarrassed and surprised him at the same time, his grey orbs widening as he developed a deep, crimson tinge in the face. "W-What? I-Is that so?" he stammered, blush darkening when she nodded her head. "T-then... is that why you went all the way here to see us?"

"Yeah." She paused. "That's okay, right?" she questioned, a frown abruptly marring her forehead. She was probably thinking that she was being a nuisance, Kurapika could tell.

He nodded his head. "Yes... it's okay." _It's more than okay_ , he added in his thoughts. Being the shy, introverted guy that he was, he would never admit it, but he had missed her. A lot. Probably to a greater extent than he would expect. A light blush crept up his cheeks yet again at the thought, but he reassured the girl that he was alright when she asked him if there was something the matter.

Kurapika blinked when he felt a sore, numbing sensation around his shoulders, implying that he had been staying still for a long amount of time. He hadn't realized it because he had been preoccupied with reading, but he had probably been sitting on the wooden chair in that same position for about three hours, at least.

Reaching one hand to rub his shoulders, the Kurta heaved out a deep sigh. Really, maybe Leorio was right. He should probably stop reading for so long. At least, not in the same posture for three hours, anyway.

His actions caught Botan's eyes, who raised an eyebrow at him in a questioning manner. "Are you okay, Kurapika?" she asked, her brows furrowing in worry.

The boy in question acknowledged her with a small, reassuring smile, halting his movements only for a second. "Yes... I'm alright. Please don't waste your concerns over me. I'm fine. It's just that... my shoulders feel kind of stiff, is all," he told her in a gentle voice.

"Oh, is that so? Then, I know just the thing to make you feel better!" she exclaimed, and to his surprise, suddenly stood up from her chair. Kurapika opened his mouth to ask her what she was planning on doing, but his words died in his throat, when the girl abruptly walked over until she was standing behind him, her soft, lithe but warm hands instantly finding his shoulders, kneading the stiff muscles underneath.

"B-Botan-san? What are you..." he trailed off when a giggle escaped her pink lips.

"What else? I'm massaging you, silly boy!" she told him, as if that wasn't obvious enough. "Now, just relax, and let lil' old Botan take care of you!" she went on in a firm yet gentle voice when he tried to protest.

Kurapika attempted to make her stop, but his words obviously felled on deaf ears as she procceded to ignore him. He bit his mouth, pearl white teeth grinding on his plump, lower lip as blood immediately rushed to his cheeks. He could feel his muscles melt underneath her ministrations, her words barely reaching his ears as he was more "preoccupied" with her hands, and the tiny, pleasurable sensations it was giving him. Although Botan could be a little physical sometimes, she had never really touched him like this before. The only times she did was to tap him on the shoulder, or during few times, accidentally brushed her fingers against his. But all that contact was brief, barely lasted longer than a second, which was why he never really took them seriously - except for those few times their hands touched on accident.

Right now however, he was beginning to grow nervous.

"B-Botan-san, there's really no need..."

"It's fine, it's fine! I've done this to Kurama before..."

Kurapika blocked out the rest of her words, a deep frown forming on his forehead as a pang of jealousy stabbed at his heart. Kurama? Well, that hardly came as a surprise. Botan **was** close to the redhead - sometimes, much too close for the blonde's comfort. He tried to shake off the envious feelings invading the middle of his chest, telling himself that those two were just friends.

"No, really. I insist..." he attempted once again. He could almost see her mouth forming a cute, little pout as he said those words.

"I told you, it's fine! Like I said, Kurama..."

The Kurta couldn't hold it in anymore; turning to face her, catching the ferry girl off guard, as she hadn't expected the sudden action. "Botan..." He was barely aware of the fact he'd dropped the honorific "san" he'd always use with her name, "Are you and Kurama-san..." He gulped before going on in a low voice, "... dating?"

A long pause hung painfully in the air.

Botan gaped at him with a weird expression, Kurapika staring back with a small blush on his face. The longer she remained silent, the more he began to worry if his suspicions were correct. He made to look away, only to halt half way in his movements a soft, girlish giggle reached his ears.

He turned to look at her again, the red tint coloring his cheeks considerably deepening at the somewhat amusing but unwavering gaze she pinned on him. Her smile, touching her honey dew lips, was midly teasing at best and utterly embarrassing at worst.

"Kurapika..." Did he imagine it or did she just **purr**? "Are you... by any chance... **jealous**?"

Kurapika's jaws felled open. He continued to peer at her, his mouth opening and closing over and over again, before he whipped around to avoid her gaze, just as the blush on his features impossibly darkened.

"W-What? O-of course **not**!" he tried to deny, only to curse inwardly at himself as the stuttering kind of gave him away.

"Hmm?" He could just see her wearing her smile broadening ever so slightly. "Really?"

He didn't reply to her, and instead, attempted to change the topic of their "discussion". "A-Anyway, you never answered my question..." he told her, and for a moment, inhaled a sharp intake of breath as he anticipated her response.

He could have sworn she was stifling back a fit of laughter. "Well, I'd admit that I think he's attractive... but, I don't really like him that way. Besides, Kurama's too focused with his mother, school and saving the world to be thinking of having a relationship with a girl... so no, we're not dating," she explained, her fingers gliding teasingly from his shoulders to his smooth neck.

Kurapika almost choked when he felt her hands massaging his sensitive throat. He bit back a groan, his eyes growing half lidded at the sensations entering each cell in his body. A shiver went down his spine when the girl bent down a little and blew a puff of air against his ear, her hot breath fanning over his skin.

"Anyway," she started, her words like a soft lullaby as it escaped her lips in a whisper, " **You** never answered **my** question," she finished, her sentence similar to that of his from before.

Kurapika could have sworn his face was as red as a ripe tomato. "I-I- Like I said, of course I'm not jealous!" he cried out in what he hoped was an indignant tone, inwardly telling herself that she would buy that lie if he pretended she had somehow offended him.

"Liar..." she whispered into his ear, before pulling back, vividly aware of his reaction at the simple gesture. She felt him jerk under her touch, and was barely successful at concealing the lopsided grin threatening to cross her lips.

"I-I'm not lying..." came his almost inaudible murmur.

Botan's grin widened a bit, and she halted her ministrations. "Then... you wouldn't mind if I test something out, now would you?"

Kurapika blinked at her words, his confusion growing stronger as the ferry girl all of a sudden decided to stop massaging his neck. He felt her pull her hands away, and nearly cried out to her not to, but he settled with turning his head to face her instead. Although, just as he did so, Botan abruptly took him by the shoulders.

Blonde eyebrows knitted together in bewilderment. "What are you..."

His words were immediately silenced by a pair of warm lips slamming against his.

The Kurta's body turned into a rigid line at the feel of her soft, plump honey dew mouth pressing against his surprised, still one. He felt her tongue dart out, teasingly licking at his lower lip and he practically froze. For a moment, he stayed unresponsive, merely tasting her as she kissed him. She tasted heavily of strawberry - and mint - he realized. And he rather liked it.

He wanted more.

Kurapika started to push back, moving his mouth rhythmically against her lips, the soft, breathy pants leaving her lips spurring him on. Their teeths bumped once, before Botan broke apart, leaving Kurapika a tad bit disappointed and aching for more.

"What... what was that?" he asked her, vividly aware of the pink tint surrounding his cheeks. For some reason, she giggled.

"I told you, I wanted to test something out," she merely told him, with a mischievous grin teasing her lips. He stared at her mutely, clueless of the meaning behind her words. She let out another girlish giggle. Bending down a little until they were eye to eye, their noses almost brushed as she whispered, "You like me."

Grey eyes broadened into saucers, another cute blush beginning to creep up Kurapika's cheeks as the revelation hit him of what she just did. Why he ought to-! How dare she trick him into... Well, he didn't actually admit it, but it was pretty close.

"It's okay," she declared, all of a sudden, bringing him out of his reverie. For some reason, she was smiling at him, the teasing grin touching her lips just a while ago reduced to nothing but a small, warm quirk of her lips, "I really like you, too," she bravely confessed, pulling back to send him a playful wink.

Kurapika felt like he would faint out of sheer embarrassment. Despite that however, he couldn't deny the obvious overwhelming glee and the surge of relief assaulting his senses.

Botan suddenly pulled a smug smirk, as if she was proud that she managed to drag him into a series of embarrassing events, and Kurapika was slowly taking his time to muse over her confession and what just occurred.

He abruptly felt a sudden need for payback.

The ferry girl - unbelievably - attempted to stroll out the door, but he would have none of that. Before she could take one step further, he shot one arm up, grabbing her tender wrist in a tight hold, before tugging her down...

... and into his lap.

Botan, startled, could only blink her eyes in surprise. A moment later though, the shock died down, nothing but confusion replacing it in its place. She shifted her head up to meet his gaze, the question of "What are you doing?" dying down on her tongue as she saw the heedy desire and mischief clouding his grey orbs making him seem almost predatory.

This time, it was **her** turn to grow nervous.

"Kurapi..." She didn't even manage to get his full name out of her lips, as it was quickly devoured by a warm, wet mouth in a bruising, almost forceful lip lock. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she nearly attempted to move away, but his callous hands immediately found her hips, digging into her plump mounds and keeping her still on his lap. A moan escaped her as she felt him lightly squeeze her butt, her parted lips allowing his tongue to dive in and meet hers in a heated dance.

Good grief, she felt as if she was on the verge of **fainting** , for god's sake!

This didn't make her so nervous when **she** was the one leading in their first kiss, but right now, he was fully dominating her. She tried to keep up, kissing back with equal fervor, but with each teasing flick of his tongue, and each bite on her lip, she was beginning to lose her grip on reality. Her trembling hands found his shoulders, her rosy nails gripping on his shirt as he pushed back once in the kiss, before abruptly breaking it off.

Eyelids fluttering open, Botan slowly opened her eyes, breathy pants leaving her lips as she stared into his loving, affectionate pools of grey, his own breathing as heavy as hers. Slowly, a smile crept its way up his charming features,

"It's not fair," he whispered, pulling her closer and nearing in proximity, "I should have been the first one to say it."

His words befuddled her, but before she could ask him what he meant, he crushed his lips against hers, successfully muffling her words. In between the passionate lip lock however, she could hear him say those three words,

"I love you."


End file.
